Govt task force to stop suicides among IITians

New Delhi: Concerned over rising cases of
suicides among IIT students in recent years, the government
has proposed setting up a task force to study the situation
and suggest "systemic" measures to address the issue.

"The task force would analyse the issue threadbare, study
the present situation in IITs, review the support systems
available, and suggest the measures which can be undertaken to
address the situation," an HRD Ministry official said.

The constitution of the task force, which would be
discussed at the IIT council meeting here on Wednesday, would
have representation from students, alumni, deans, parents and
teachers.

Some experts on the subject of suicide can also be
considered for membership of such a task force, the official
said, indicating it could be headed by an eminent person such
as director of National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro
Sciences.

The need for such a body was being increasingly felt as
steps taken so far to address the problem including measures
to de-stress students did not prove sufficient enough, the
official said.

Studies have suggested that most of the students took
such extreme measure either due to stress-related disorder or
had succumbed to depression.

In recent years, cases of suicides have been reported
from several of the IIT campuses - the latest one being
from IIT Patna on September 1 where a 20-year-old girl from
Andhra Pradesh allegedly committed suicide by jumping from the
roof of her hostel as she was depressed with her performance
in the elite institute.